The Mystery of Love
by Destroying angel -chamiron
Summary: Sakura is a new girl in town. As times pass, she began to have unnatural experiences with her new neighbors and about their deaths. Will she solve it before her time comes? sasuxsakuxnaru
1. The move

**The Mystery of Love**

_cooled-but-fired_

_

* * *

_

Another one of my mystery fanfics. Well, maybe it's too corny and too "_magulo_" but I just can' t think any better. Sorry...Plz. bear with me :)

* * *

**Chapter 1**

The move

* * *

"But Mom, I don't want to move to Konoha!"

That was how this all began. Sakura and her parents were moving from the big city to some backwater town in the middle of nowhere.

_'My life as a teenager was officially over. I mean, look at what living out here would do to my social life- not to mention my skin!'_

As they unpacked the car, Sakura walked through the metal archway that read 'Vale Farm'. Yep, this was where her grandfather had lived, at least until her grandmother had died.

"There's probably no one my age! They're probably all _old_ and… blehh!" She cried in distress, _'what is that gonna do to make my parents rethink this? Nothing, that's what.'_

"Now, sweetheart, your grandparents were old, and they had me when I was growing up here," her mother tried to comfort me.

"Yeah, and now _we_ have _you_. So don't you think anyone else in this town had children?" her dad pitched in. She knew he was trying to help, but this conversation was not making her feel better.

"Yeah, whatever," Sakura mumbled unpacking her things. As she pushed open the front door, her jaw dropped in shock.

"Mom! Dad! Come here, quick!" They ran forward, dropping what they held, and looked in the house.

"What's the matter, honey?" her mom asked in concern, peering into the house. '_Did she not see it? Was she blind? Could she not possibly see the horror that lay right before her eyes?'_

"M-mom," Sakura said with the straightest voice she could muster, "there's only one room." Her parents looked at her in wonder, and her dad decided to take a closer look.

"Hmm, honey, why is that?" he asked in genuine confusion, "And there's no kitchen! What kind of house is this?" he said angrily, rounding on Sakura's mother. She only laughed.

"Well, I didn't know you expected our old house all over again. My parents were good friends with the innkeeper, so we ate out every night. I'd expect his son has gotten older by now. Aha, we should go visit them. Maybe as a nice welcome back gift, they'll treat us to dinner tonight!"

"Or maybe he won't remember you and will kick you out when he realizes that you're asking for free food," Sakura said quietly. It was enough to shut her parents up for a minute.

"Are they open on Tuesdays?" her dad asked.

"They're open every day," her mom replied, "well except holidays, of course. This town was very close knit. I think we'll fit in great!" That was her mother, always the optimist.

"Yeah… right," Sakura mumbled. _'I had a very bad feeling about this town, but I was hesitant to tell this to my parents. This move meant so much to them, and I didn't want to bum them out.'_

Ten minutes later, all the things were out of the car and piled in the house, boxes and bags were piled up, almost making look as if the house were close to bursting.

"Man, I'm hungry," her dad said. He always thought with his stomach. The doorbell suddenly rang, making Sakura jump. She was so under the impression that this place was a ghost town that it seemed strange that anyone would even be there to visit.

Sakura answered it. There was a tall and burly man with black shiny hair and, umm... thick eyebrows standing at the door. "Hey, uh, the mayor told me that you guys moved here," he said, somewhat quietly. Funny, he looked like a louder guy.

"Uh, yeah. We did. What's it to you?" she said, always the instigator.

"Gai!" her mother squealed happily. Nearly throwing her aside, she gave the tall figure a hug. "Remember me? It's me, Rin!"

It took Gai a minute to register what Sakura's mom had just said, but when he did, he began chatting with her excitedly. Her dad even joined in._ 'It was sickening, seeing adults chatting like little children.'_

Soon after the introductions, Gai grabbed Sakura's mom by her shoulders and said excitedly, "I'll go tell the town that you're here, and we can all meet at the inn for a feast!" Her parents were delighted.

Sakura, however, was not.

An hour later, they were walking down a little dirt path. _'It was disgusting, how there were no paved roads, and not a car in sight. Even bikes were scarce. All that reassured me of was that the town was so small, EVERYTHING was within walking distance.'_ Her parents ignored her on the walk into town.

The inn must have been the biggest building in town, save the church, whose steeple was visible from their farm. As Sakura walked in, she saw perhaps thirty people. Leaning over to her mom, Sakura asked quietly, "Is this… the town?" Rin nodded and Sakura heaved a huge sigh of annoyance.

"Welcome back, Rin!" the mayor said happily as he ran forward, "Konoha would like to celebrate your return by treating you all to dinner, which was cooked up by our very own Iruka!" A brownheaded man smiled warmly and waved.

"I trust you know everyone here, Rin?" the mayor asked.

Sakura's mother scanned the waiting crowd and furrowed her brows. "There are a few new faces, mostly the young ones," she laughed, "but I suppose we'll all get to know each other in time!" Her father nudged her mother and indicated that Sakura was still present.

"Huh? Oh, yes! I almost forgot!" she cried, "This is my daughter, Sakura! She was born after I left Konoha, so she'd be about the age of all the other young ladies in the room, I suppose." As Sakura's family was bombarded with questions, she managed to stay far enough out of the way so she was not bothered.

As she edged away from the crowd, she saw a boy standing off to the side. He looked cool and always calm. He had pearl eyes that can melt anyone at sight. "Hey, what's your name?" Sakura started

He looked up at her blankly and smiled a bit while saying the words "Neji. _'I think he is cool, but he may be a little killjoy'._

"Let the feasting begin!" someone cried, and Sakura realized that it was the mayor. He has white hair and a tall mascular figure. Sakura made her way to the tables and sat near her parents. All the tables were tightly packed, and some people had to stand, but as refreshments and plates of food were handed out, the town housewives made their way to her mom.

"Oh, Rin!" one cried, "It's been so long! Remember me?"

"Shizune!" her mom squealed, "Oh, Shizune, dear! How have you been?"

Most of the conversations revolved around what had happened the eighteen odd years that she had been gone, but when Iruka walked up, her mom took the reins of the topics of gossip.

Giving him a hug, she began to talk eagerly to him. Sakura was under the impression that they had been the best of childhood friends. "So… where's your fiance?" she asked excitedly, "I heard that you two were going to be married after I left."

Iruka's face changed to utterly broken in a fraction of a second.

"She, uh, she passed away a few years ago" he said sadly. Sakura's mother looked embarrassed at having brought up such a sore subject. "My adoptive child, Ten ten"

He pointed to a brownheaded girl that was trying to talk to the 'Neji' boy, "She doesn't even remember her. She helps me get through the day. She has her smile, you know..."

_'I felt suddenly guilty. I had suddenly realized how significant they all really were. I had been thinking that they all were just hicks with no real lives, but now I saw that even the innkeeper had more of a life than I would have ever hoped to have.'_

"How about the other children?" her father asked, with a side-glance at Sakura, "Could you tell us who they are?"

"Oh, that's Hinata," Shizune pointed at a girl with short black hair, "she's Hiashi's…" breaking off, she looked at the other side of the room, "That little cutie is Temari, she runs the town library. Such a quiet girl really; Shikaku let his son move here from the city, his name is Shikamaru. He's very quiet too, as a matter of fact…"

Everyone seemed to go into a stupor as Shizune droned on and on about families and romances, and marriages and even cattle. Sakura just grew sick of it.

"Who's the dork?" she asked, indicating a young man wearing orange jumper and has blonde hair. He looked like, dare I even think it, the Dorkanator. He would have looked better in a white shirt and tie with a pocket protector and braces. He would need to have glasses insanely large, but his eyes were the most beautiful blue Sakura had ever seen. She was not going to say that though, not after calling him a dork.

"That's the mayor's nephew, Naruto… My daughter, Ino, is over there, talking with Ten ten," a woman with black hair that is tied up said sadly, "Their father left to find a desert plant that would cure me. I wish he had stayed, though… We really need him here."

_'Oops. Sorry, lady. Just like my mother, I had 'foot-in-mouth' disorder.'_ Just as Sakura was about to ask about a girl on the other side of the room wearing an apron with a violet dress, her mother asked excitedly, all the while nudging her, "Who's that young man over there?"

All the adults standing around them turned their heads and saw exactly whom she was pointing at. He was tall, dark and handsome. He wore a blue shirt with its collar reaching his chin, and white shorts. His hair was raven and as jet black as his eyes.

"That's Dr. Uchiha's son…" the black haired woman whispered, "Don't you remember him?"

Sakura's mom nodded. "Dr. Uchiha's son? Sasuke? He was only a year old or something when I left here; how old would he be now, Anko? Twenty, nineteen? I remember when he was just a little tyke… I never thought that he would grow to be such a handsome man…" Her father cleared his throat and her mother laughed nervously.

Anko sighed and continued, "Dr. Uchiha… He and his wife died a few years ago, and he took over the family practice. Poor boy, he never really wanted to be a doctor, but his father felt it was in his blood."

"In his blood?" Iruka said darkly, "That man almost named his son 'Doctor'! If you ask me, the Uchihas were a strange bunch… Forced his boy into the practice… what was it he wanted to be?"

"A writer, I believe. Either that or an artist," Shizune chimed in, "I can't really remember. All I know is that it was a real waste of talent. He was only twelve when he was accepted into an art college, but his father wouldn't hear of it! He wanted to go to an art college so badly, and he had even won enough scholarships to make it through four full years, but his father said no and forced him to learn the family practice at home. Then, Sasuke did what any child would do, like what his older brother did, and ran away. They went out and found him on the Mountain's Peak, staring at the sky. Say, didn't Dr. Uchiha start having heart problems when they brought him back?" she asked.

"I think so… he sort of went screwy after awhile, but we all thought everything was perfectly fine, until one morning, we walked into the clinic and saw Sasuke crying over their bodies. He was mumbling over and over about how he couldn't save them…" Iruka mumbled.

"They died from heart attacks, didn't they?" Anko asked.

"Yeah…" another woman chimed in, "We managed to calm Sasuke down and ever since then, he's been a really sweet guy. I don't exactly like him, per se, but he's always been kind to us all. There is something about him, though…"

"Kurenai's got a point…" Anko sighed, "the poor boy has to act as not only a doctor, but as a vet. All the pressure builds up, having everyone's life depend on you like that. Sometimes, the stress really seems to get to him and he goes into a sort of slump; he does his job, but there's an apathetic sort of air around him…"

Kurenai whispered, "It isn't that that bothers me. It's how he reacts to deaths in the town…" They all leaned in nervously, even though Sakura could hear her perfectly.

"Does he act strangely when there's a death?" Sakura's mom asked.

"It isn't that…" Kurenai said quietly, "he doesn't act at all."

"What?" Sakura said before she could stop herself.

"It's as though nothing had happened. It was the same way with his parents. After they died, he didn't really even seem to care. Call me paranoid, but he just irks me. That's all…" Kurenai whispered.

Before Sakura knew what she was even saying, it seemed to burst forth from her chest.

"Don't blame him, I mean, his parents died when he was just a kid. It seems as though you're accusing him of being weird or something, but he's probably just a really nice guy that's trying look for someone to fill the void!" Everyone around them seemed to fall silent after she had finished ranting.

"Well, I sure can tell that she's your girl, Rin!" Iruka laughed nervously. Everyone in the inn, the adults at least, broke into nervous chuckles. Iruka jerked his head towards the other side of the room, all the while looking at her. Sakura looked up towards where he indicated.

Sasuke was looking right at her, his head cocked to the side slightly. Then it hit her: he knew that she was talking about him. she saw him glance edgily at her parents, then the townspeople nearby them. His black eyes narrowed slightly, giving an air of opacity.

She could not move; she could not breathe, nor did it seem any of the others could as well. As Sasuke slid off of his stool and walked towards the door of the inn, everyone inside seemed to avoid any sort of eye contact with him, except for Sakura.

"I'll be leaving now," he said in mock cheerfulness. As he gave the room one final viewing, she saw his eyes meet her own. They crinkled into a warm smile.

"Goodnight," he said quietly. As Sakura raised her hand to wave a goodbye, he walked out the door and slammed it.

It seemed as though the whole room breathed a sigh of relief. As Iruka went to clean up Sasuke's drink, Sakura's mother looked at her reproachfully.

Shizune, however, tucked her hair behind her ear and whispered, "I think he likes _you_." Sakura tried to smile, but it must have looked like a grimace.

* * *

Yahoo! New story, new life! Well, I just wish you understood what I was pointing in the story. Sakura feels uneasy about the whole town and more of that sort. Well, I'd like u to review so I would know if I still have to continue this story or not. Don't hate me, I just feel that no one cares for my story and it's just being a waste :(

* * *


	2. The missed kiss

Chapter 2 - A missed kiss

Starting this point this will be Sakura's POV so it won't be harder for me to make it

Thank you for these two who reviewed for me:

**rainingblood666 - **you got that right. Thank you for reviewing

**onigiri-kun - **so sweet...thank you for that. Don't worry i'll update soon

* * *

"We should be getting home," said a man in a white shirt, his hair slicked back, "Kurenai my cousin, Hinata, let's get going." 

"Coming, Hiashi," Kurenai sighed, "Hinata, dear, let's get going." Hinata followed her auntie, waving goodbye to Naruto as she left. He waved halfheartedly, and I saw that he was glancing towards me.

Anko rubbed her forehead and said her good-byes, walking towards her son and daughter. They walked on either side of her as they, too, left the inn. Soon after, every one of the villagers followed suit, except for Iruka and his adoptive daughter.

"It was wonderful to see you again, Rin," Iruka said kindly, giving my mother a warm embrace, "and it was great meeting you," he said to my father. "And Sakura," he turned to me, "don't be a stranger. You are always welcome here. I'm sure you and Ten ten will get along fine, along with all the other young people. Feel free to drop in whenever, because it's on the house." I was amazed at the show of southern hospitality as I shook his hand.

My parents walked towards the door, but I lagged behind, watching as Ten ten began to sweep the floor. Iruka was picking up plates and taking them to the back of the room. Ten ten watched me curiously as I turned towards my parents and said, "I'll be home in a little bit, okay?" They consented, and I began to pick the plates up.

"You don't have to do this," Ten ten objected, "we do this for a living, after all." I glanced up and smiled sadly.

"You didn't get any money for tonight, though, so I figured this is the least I could do." Ten ten couldn't seem to come up with any kind of counter, though, and let me continue. When Iruka came back from the kitchen, he nearly dropped the mop and bucket he was carrying.

"You shouldn't be here," he said cautiously, "wild dogs come out at night, and you wouldn't want to get attacked."

"I'm just going to help you two clean up the inn, and then I'll get back home, I promise," I told him. He chuckled to himself and put the bucket on the floor.

"You any good with a mop?" he asked. I smiled and nodded, taking the mop. After a couple of dunks in the bucket, the floor was looking much better, and the two people watching me seemed surprised.

"I'll take it from here, Sakura," Ten ten said appreciatively, "You know, when I saw you, I thought you were some city bumpkin with no taste for good hard work. I guess I really was wrong about you." I laughed.

"Well, we're living on a farm now, so I had better get used to it sooner or later. Also, I just wanted to help. I had the major wrong impression about you guys too," I said tiredly.

"At least you didn't think we were just hicks with no lives, isn't that right, Ten ten?" Iruka chuckled, but he laughed even harder at the look on my face, which gave it all away.

"You're a good kid," he said quietly. Ten ten seemed to be beaming at me.

"It would be a shame for that to go to waste, so don't ever hesitate to talk to anyone here. You're part of the family now."

"Family?" I asked sarcastically.

"We're a very small town, so everyone here is so close, it is as though we are a family, and kid, you're in it," he said. As I went to give Ten ten the mop, Iruka seemed to be deep in thought.

"Of course," he began, "there is always a black sheep in any family…" I half expected him to go on ranting about Sasuke, but I was only half-wrong in that assumption. "I wanted to apologize though, for what we all were saying about Sasuke earlier. The whole story is true, but I think we have all jumped to conclusions about him. You were just what we needed to think twice about that. I'll admit, I don't feel as comfortable about him as I could," Iruka paused to sigh, "but there is still the chance that you could be right about him."

"I think it'll take awhile for everyone to warm up to your point of view, but maybe if you could help everyone see the good side of him, then we'd all feel much better, including Sasuke," Iruka said exhaustedly.

"Dad," Ten ten began, "are you telling Sakura that she should hook up with Sasuke?" I started, understanding now what he had been implying.

"Well…" Iruka broke off, shrugging in dull agreement, "yeah, I think it would be a good idea. I-I mean, you know, after everything that's happened to him, he could probably use a special someone whom wouldn't be afraid to get close to him. Ino has showed an interest, but you can tell that she feels a little uncomfortable around him, just like everyone else."

"All right," I said. Iruka smiled. "I'm not making any promises, I mean, we might not even hook up, but I'll try to make friends with him."

I was escorted to the door a few minutes later by the father and daughter. "Thank you so much for all your help," Ten ten said.

"Are you sure you don't need one of us to walk you home? We'd be glad to, so don't feel put off by feeling like a burden," Iruka asked. I shook my head and replied that I would be perfectly fine.

"Suit yourself," he said quietly, "but be careful out there. There's more than wild dogs out there."

They shut the door behind me as I left, and I heaved a sigh of comfort. The cool night air felt so wonderful on my face and arms, and the stars were perfectly visible in the night sky. There was obviously little to no pollution anywhere nearby. As I walked down the road, I came to a fork.

Uh-oh, I thought. It had been so long since I had even seen the road, and I had seen it only once at that, I had forgotten the way back home. Neither of the paths looked all that familiar in the dark, so I simply turned left. After a minute or two things started to look bad. I realized that I had gone the wrong way, but it was only nine at night, I mean, someone should have still been awake. I would have to just ask for directions.

The major question was which place should I disturb? It seemed as though everyone in this small town went to bed awful early. I didn't blame them, though. They all seemed to work pretty hard. Just as I was about to turn back, I saw a light. It was like a beacon of hope. I ran towards it.

It was on the second floor of a white building. I sighed in relief and went to knock on the door, but then I gasped in shock.

The door read, 'Clinic Hours: 9AM-4PM; Closed Wednesdays'. Oops. I immediately turned and went back to the road. I looked back the way I had come, then to the left and right.

To my left was the church; to the right, one lone street lamp that had burnt out, but past that, everything was dark, impossible to see. Ahead of me, the direction I had come from, I could see a vague light, but the fog obscured my vision past twenty feet in every direction.

I sighed and glanced towards the church. I was pretty sure that the candles that were lit in the windows were for show only. What was I going to do now? As I began to walk straight again, I heard something behind me.

I turned towards the sound and saw a pale figure locking the door to the clinic. I was far too curious to walk away, so I kept my eyes on the person. As he turned around, though, I recognized him.

"You looking for something?" Sasuke asked me as he put his keys in his pocket. So it was his light that had been on; he must have seen me walking down the road and come to check on me.

"Oh, I was just walking home. I stayed after to help Ten ten and Iruka clean up after the party," I said nervously. He only laughed.

"Well you went in the totally opposite direction of your house. Are you sure you weren't looking for something else?" he asked softly.

"I don't know my way around this town. I was just trying to get home," I insisted. It was the truth after all, but I knew what he was hinting at.

"All right then," he laughed, "can I walk you home?" His black eyes seemed to burn into my own. I nodded and he beckoned for me to follow.

After we had walked a few minutes, he slowed his pace and asked, "They were talking about me, weren't they?" I had no clue what to say; I was utterly speechless. He looked over at me, "Well?"

I nodded silently. He gave a 'tsk' and a sigh and said, "I really appreciate what you said though. I don't know why everyone here seems to hate me so much, but I really wish it would all stop. Thanks, uh…"

"Sakura," I responded instinctively. It was all I could do to keep from blushing. He was so handsome, and he was looking at me… with bedroom eyes! Wow, I thought, how could this happen to me?

"What a nice name. Just like the cherry blossoms that grows around here during Spring."

"Really?," I asked in great awe." You know, I have never seen one in my own life except for pictures and I would likely see one"

"And you're as beautiful as one" his voice rang through my ears and...I liked it. He's sweet. The town had really misjudge him

"I'll go with you tommorow at the forest to see them"

"Thank you" Oh how will I hide my blush from him? Hopefully it is quiet dark around this street.

* * *

"Here we are," he said quietly. I could tell that he was no longer looking at me. Sure enough, I looked up and saw the familiar metal arch that read 'Vale Farm'. I looked towards him and smiled. 

"Thanks for walking me home," I said softly. Our faces inched closer.

"Thanks for sticking up for me in front of them," he whispered. I shut my eyes… and pulled away.

"Please I think it is quiet dark now," I mumbled as I turned away from him. He looked a little cross at having been stopped from the 'imminent kiss'.

"You're parents were talking about me?" he asked coldly.

"As was the whole town, Sasuke. You know, I really need to get home," I said softly, "you should too. Wild dogs come out at night."

He laughed as thought he couldn't believe what was going on.

"Home?" he cried out as he walked away from me backwards. He put his hands in the air, "What home?"

I let out a small shriek of frustration and stomped away. I knew it was not his fault that I was frustrated. The town was awful rude to talk about him while he was there. I realized that I was utterly in the wrong. As I made it to the door, I pounded my fist on the wall and muttered, "Damn, I was about to kiss with him, too!"

The front door opened. It was my father.  
"Sakura!" he cried, "I've been worried about you, and so has your mother! Come on in and grab your things."

"What?" I asked edgily.

"Oh," he said belatedly, "you don't mind sleeping in the shed, do you? It's pretty well insulated. It's sort of a guestroom. That way, you won't need to put up with sharing a bed with us, right?" He had a point.

* * *

Five minutes later, I kicked open the door to the shed and flicked on the light. Much to my surprise, it was fully furnished, with a window and everything. It was almost as large as that actual house! In all honesty, it made up for the missed kiss double the value. 

"Score!" I cried, jumping onto the bed. It was freshly made thanks to my mother and her quick thinking. They were my favorite sheets, too, with little sheep on them. I changed into my matching sheep pajamas and flicked off the light.

As I curled up in my new bed, and my new room, flashes of the day seemed to engulf my fading waking moments. My eyes finally shut as I saw Sasuke leaving the inn, and smiling at me.

Yet, that memory just didn't do the dreams justice.

* * *

Another chapter finished. Why is it that few people review in these story? Hey please check out my other stories and please...review within five minutes or you'll see a girl all in white lurking in your room... 


	3. The death

Thank You for:

rainingblood666 - You reviewed again!! Wowowee!! Don't worry maybe you'll see that girl nxt time

Aria Karakaze - first time for you to review to me, right? Thank you very much. This is the first death, okay?

And for the ones who reviewed last time...Onigiri-kun and rainingblood666... how wretched I am :( The same peole are reviewing :((

* * *

Chapter 3 - The death

* * *

It might have been my alarm clock that woke me up, or it might have been Scruffy. I climbed out of bed and flung open the door to my 'room'. Scruffy stood barking, her hackles raised. I ran towards her, wondering all the while what was going on. (Scruffy is Sakura's dog)

"Scruffy? What's the matter, girl?" I asked, stroking her head. She whimpered and backed away from me, like she always does whenever something is wrong. I looked around wildly. What could be wrong? We kept no livestock, and we had nothing of any real value here on our land. Besides, no one in this small town would even dream of stealing, right?

I ran back and into the house. "Mom, Dad!" I cried, "Something's wrong with Scruffy!" No one answered. No one was even in the house. I gasped and ran back out to Scruffy.

"Girl, what's the matter?" I asked wildly, "What happened? Where's Mom and Dad?" Of course I received no answer, but she did continue barking towards the forest.

Without another thought, I ran like mad toward the forest. Scruffy decided to lead the way. She came to a fork in the road and began sniffing. Without any further hesitation, she began to sprint straight ahead, and I followed. She led me through a path of dark and ominous trees, right to a large lake. On the far side of the lake, I saw something that I couldn't entirely comprehend.

Scruffy seemed to slow as she reached the opposite side of the lake, as did my pace. I couldn't believe what I was seeing.

Sasuke was on his knees beside the lifeless bodies of my parents. He had no expression on his face whatsoever, and seemed to be in a trance.

"Mom! Dad!" I screamed, throwing myself to the ground.

"Sakura," Sasuke said, looking up. He seemed to have barely recognized me. "I… I'm sorry."

I paid no attention to him, focusing only on the two bodies in front of him. Shaking my mother fiercely, I desperately hoped and prayed that it would wake her. It did not.

Yet, as I began to cry, I saw my father's hand twitch. I leaned over him, shaking him by the shoulders. His eyes opened, I laughed in relief.

"Dad, are you all right?" I cried out, grasping his cold, pale hand. His mouth opened, and he pulled me close.

"Get away from him," my father whispered, his voice sounding strained, "before he kills you, too." Those were his last words. My head shot up as something beside me moved. It was Sasuke. I cautiously edged away from him, trying to get to my feet as inconspicuously as possible.

He walked to the water's edge and said quietly, "It was the Kappa." I did not know how to respond. What was a Kappa? I glanced towards the lake and saw a ripple cross the glasslike surface. Memories of grade school flooded my mind. We had read stories about Japanese myths. Suddenly, I knew what the Kappa was.

"They were lying like this when I found them," he whispered. Before I could register what he had said, he dropped to his knees, weeping in anguish. "It's like all the others," he cried, "I've failed…"

His head drooped onto his chest as he repeated over and over, "I couldn't save them, I couldn't save them and it continues to kill them," his voice seeming shrill and young. His black eyes seemed to fade, becoming unfocused.

There we were, crying by the lake. What could we have done?

"What's going on here?" a deep voice asked fiercely. It was Gai. I ran to him and threw my arms around him, glad to see a friend, or at least a friend of the family. He patted my shoulder to calm me down.

"Gai, my parents," I choked into his shirt. He looked towards the water's edge and pushed me away gently. Howling in rage, he ran to their bodies. Sasuke flew the coop, in a manner of speaking.

Gai leaned over their bodies, trying to resuscitate them, but they were too far-gone. He looked up at Sasuke, who stood at a safe distance away. "You bastard, what did you do to them?" he roared, his gentle demeanor suddenly shattered.

"Sasuke didn't do anything!" I screamed, bringing myself into the fight. "The Kappa did it! Sasuke did nothing!" I was crying harder than I ever had before, "He didn't do anything," I shrieked, falling to my knees beside Gai.

"He never does," Gai growled angrily, glaring at Sasuke. The young man seemed hurt and frightened. I knew that there was something about that moment that I did not know. Something between Sasuke and Gai.

I could barely tell that I was still crying. Seeing my parents dead on the ground in front of me had numbed my entire body. I began to tremble uncontrollably and fell to the ground. As my eyes began to close, I could see Sasuke standing over me, a concerned expression upon his pale face.

"Take her home," I could hear Gai say, "I'll have to take them to the clinic. I'll tell Carter." Before my consciousness faded away entirely, I could feel Sasuke pick me up and carry me away. It was so warm in his arms.

"Who did this to you, Rin?" Gai asked, kneeling beside my mother's body. "Why would the Kappa do such a thing?"

Sasuke's grip on me tightened as we made our way through the grove of trees. With his face above me, the trees did not seem as ominous as they had when I was alone. Scruffy whined as she trotted along beside us, ever loyal to me. As the light poured in through the trees, it lit up Sasuke's face, making his skin look so smooth…

He laid me down in my parent's bed. He must not have known that I had slept in the outside shed. My eyes were barely open; he apparently could not tell, for as he began to walk away, he paused.

Turning around, he approached me again. Leaning over, he kissed my forehead, but did not pull away from me. Reaching around, he put his arms around my body, holding me close.

A tear fell from my eye when I heard him say to the silence,

"I'm sorry."

* * *

Too SHORT!!! Well, it's my writer's block so don't accuse me of being lazy in updating. Well, you could quiet include that in my reasons. I'm good in it. Well Please! I beg of you! Please review. I can't think if you liked it or it was like a piece of a crap to you. And look at my other two stories too. I don't get anymore reviews from it. 


End file.
